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79R4261 JLZ-D
By: Madla S.C.R. No. 1
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, For many school administrators, teachers, and
parents, standardized testing provides an objective means to
determine whether schools are doing their job of educating students
to the level required by state standards; and
WHEREAS, For the individual student, standardized testing
also has great value as a diagnostic tool, helping teachers
pinpoint specific areas in which that student needs improvement and
helping both the student and the appropriate teachers measure the
student's progress toward specific academic goals; and
WHEREAS, The mandated use of standardized testing in Texas
public schools began in 1979 when the Texas Legislature passed
Senate Bill 350, which required the Central Education Agency to
adopt and administer appropriate criterion-referenced tests for
students in grades three and five and a secondary exit-level test
for students in grade nine; because the legislature also required
the reporting of the aggregate results of this test, which became
known as the Texas Assessment of Basic Skills (TABS), the test
marked the beginning of accountability for school campuses and
districts; and
WHEREAS, Conceived partly as a diagnostic tool for both
students and schools, TABS was superseded by a series of other
tests, each more rigorous than its predecessor, with the current
Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) being administered
for the first time in spring 2003; in addition to raising the bar
for measuring student academic performance, the succession of tests
repeatedly raised the stakes for students, teachers, school
administrators, and even school board members as testing became a
cornerstone of the state's nationally recognized public school
accountability system in 1993; and
WHEREAS, Not only have the stakes been raised as a result of
the state's use of TAKS results in its accountability system, but
the proliferation of other tests has raised concerns about the
amount of time being spent on testing students and preparing them
for the various tests and about the actual benefits of such
extensive testing relative to the expenditure of resources; and
WHEREAS, While the TABS was designed to measure basic skills
competencies in reading, writing, and mathematics for students in
grades three, five, and nine, today's TAKS is given to students in
grades three through 11 and requires students to demonstrate
proficiency in science and social history as well as reading,
writing, and mathematics; and
WHEREAS, In addition to the state-mandated TAKS, some
districts administer certain national norm-referenced tests such
as the Iowa Test of Basic Skills or the Stanford Achievement Test;
many Texas schools also participate in the National Assessment of
Educational Progress (NAEP) program, which administers tests in
various subject areas at regular intervals to students in Texas and
across the country; and
WHEREAS, During the 4th Called Session of the 78th Texas
Legislature, legislation was proposed that would have expanded a
school's burden with regard to the testing of students by requiring
each school district to administer a college preparation test such
as the SAT or the ACT to every student in the recommended or
advanced high school programs in grades eight, nine, and 10; and
WHEREAS, Although the measure failed to pass, Texas educators
must be mindful of the testing schedule as well as of the level of
test-readiness among those students in their charge who are
candidates for those tests because the set of performance
indicators used to evaluate the quality of learning on a campus and
to determine a district's accreditation includes student
participation in and performance on those two tests; cognizant of
that fact, some districts encourage students to participate in
testing and test preparation programs as early as eighth grade; and
WHEREAS, While many of the stakeholders in public education,
including teachers and members of the legislature, believe that
standardized tests are helpful, appropriate, and desirable, it
nevertheless is true that teachers are becoming overwhelmed by the
increasing number of standardized tests for which they must prepare
their students; and
WHEREAS, The possibility that more school districts may add
to this burden by requiring further benchmark testing threatens to
compound the problem; it is time therefore to consider whether
schools can achieve their desired outcomes as well as those desired
by the public and the legislature by reducing or consolidating
testing instruments; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 79th Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby request the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house
of representatives to create a joint interim committee to examine
the impact of public school assessment instruments on the quality
of instruction, teacher morale, and students' motivation to learn;
and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the study shall include the following
analyses:
(1) the usefulness of the various tests in elementary
and secondary schools as predictors or indicators of student
success;
(2) the impact of testing on the amount of
instructional time and on the content of instruction offered at the
elementary and secondary school levels;
(3) the amount of classroom time required to prepare
for and administer multiple tests in public schools;
(4) whether teachers would benefit from a reduction in
the paperwork requirements associated with mandatory testing in
public schools;
(5) whether there is a need to adjust the timing of the
tests' administration in the public schools to optimize student
success; and
(6) the extent to which teachers and students might
benefit from a reduction or consolidation of the current number of
mandatory tests administered at the elementary and secondary school
levels; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the committee's proceedings and operations be
governed by such general rules and policies for joint interim
committees as the 79th Legislature may adopt and that such rules and
policies supersede the provisions of this resolution to the extent
of any conflict; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the committee submit a full report, including
findings and recommendations, to the Texas Legislature not later
than September 1, 2006.